Mentoring

In this episode of our Research Files podcast series, editor Jo Earp talks to ACER’s Dr Tim Friedman about the latest Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS). We’ll be focusing on the theme of staff wellbeing and looking at some of the protective factors when it comes to levels of teacher job satisfaction and stress.

Australia’s results from the Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS) have just been released. The survey captures the firsthand knowledge and experiences of school educators. Here we explore some of the key findings on staff wellbeing, collegiality, mentoring support, and use of AI.

‘While intergenerational trauma remains a reality, we are also seeing powerful examples of intergenerational success.’ Dr Jennet Hansen from Sevenoaks Senior College in Western Australia tells us about the Follow the Dream program, how she encourages students’ connections to their culture and Country, and the impact it has had on their learning, achievement and post-school pathways. 

As a teacher, you’ll likely remember your first few years in the profession and the support that made a difference to you. But what does the research say about how schools can best support early career teachers? Ebony Malzek from Monash University joins Dominique Russell in this podcast to discuss new research in this area. 

The latest edition of National Trends: Teacher Workforce published by AITSL presents data on the characteristics of the teacher workforce to contribute to an understanding of who Australia’s teachers are and what their workforce experiences look like. In 2023 there were over 50,000 participants in the survey. This infographic shows the induction experience of early career teachers in 2023.

In Teacher’s first reader submission of 2025, Brisbane-based senior educator Jessica J Griffin reflects on her own leadership practice and philosophy, and how this has changed over the course of her career – moving beyond authority to collaboration, empathy and resilience.

‘School leaders expressed a need for better-prepared new teachers who could integrate smoothly into the Independent school environment … [the program creates] a pipeline of qualified teachers who are already familiar with the school's culture and practices.’ In today’s article, we look at a new mentorship program addressing staffing needs.

‘The intention of the research was to … enhance beginning teachers’ readiness for the profession as inclusive educators, working with students with disability.’ In this article, we explore some findings of a new open-access paper that identifies areas of inclusive education where teachers perceived they weren’t sufficiently prepared.

The Future-focused Mentoring initiative has been working with teachers in 2 Australian states. In this project update, the research team share findings from analysis of conversations between teacher mentor and early career teachers, implications for practice, and what schools can do to support genuine and authentic learning partnerships.

The Future-focused mentoring initiative has been working with schools in Queensland and New South Wales. In our latest reader submission, Dr Ellen Larsen, Associate Professor Hoa Nguyen and Dr Elizabeth Curtis share details of the pilot project and its early findings.